Love is a smoke
by dolphey
Summary: When Mary and Francis were young they were best friends, but after their parents had a falling out, they didn't see each other. 10 years later, Mary is just an average high school girl who loves drama and Francis is the most wanted boy in school. Until they are chosen to play Romeo and Juliet. Can Mary persevere and play the part or will she fall under the pressure? Modern AU
1. Chapter 1

'Shit' I mumbled as I looked at my alarm clock, late, again. I jumped up and scrambled to the bathroom to get ready. I've become a master at getting ready quickly. I brush my hair, put on some makeup, and throw on some jeans and a Sherlock sweatshirt. 'How does one even achieve this level of lateness consistently?' I mumble as I walk down the stairs with my toothbrush still in my mouth.

I grab a bagel and go to my mother's study. This room brings back so many memories. When I was five, I used to play with my neighbor, Francis. We used to be such good friends. I tell her goodbye and run out of the house to try and catch the bus.

Somehow, I get onto the bus on time and sit with my best friend, Kenna. 'You almost didn't make it. Again.' she glares at me. 'Oh shut up' I tell her, munching on my bagel. Kenna has been one of my best friends since third grade. She was always better than me. She always had better grades, more friends, and to me, she was always prettier. She has that kind of angelic look about her, brown hair and brown eyes.

As we get of off the bus, we go to each other's lockers to put away our books. As I'm opening my locker, Kenna nudges me. 'What?' But I didn't have to ask. As I turned around I saw exactly what she was looking at. Francis Valois. He is beautiful. Gold ringlets surround his face and those green eyes illuminate any room he walks into. But here's the thing about Francis. Every girl throws herself at him, and even though, I will admit, he is hot, I won't think of dating him because I believe he is a player. 'He is so dreamy' Kenna sighs. 'Stop, you know none of us have a chance with him.' I say. 'Oh that reminds me, who is his latest conquest?' She hits my arm. 'He isn't actually like that you know. He says he waiting for the one or some absurd thing like that.' I snort. 'Oh please, Francis Valois? The one?' I wish I believed her. He used to be my Francis, and I used to be his Mary, but now I don't exist to him. I'm just another girl.

The bell rings, dismissing us to class. My first period is drama, which is one of my favorite classes. Something about being someone else, even for a short period of time, is amazing to me. I walk in and take my seat, as usual, but today, something is different. I look around to see why I'm so uneasy, and I spot the problem almost immediately. Francis is here. I thought I heard Kenna say something about drama while she was talking about Francis, but after I while I just drown Kenna out. He spots me looking at him, and I look down, but not quickly enough. He sits next to me. 'Hi, I'm Francis, and you are?' He says, studying me. As if this day could get any worse.


	2. Chapter 2

**FRANCIS**

I don't know why I'm doing this, I obviously know who she is. The beautiful girl sitting next to me is Mary Stuart. She was my closest friend when I was growing up but my parents decided that 'our families were too different' and we should not associate with the Stuarts anymore. I'm only pretending not to know her because there is no possible way she remembers me. Right? Soon enough my brother Bash comes in and sits next to me. Bash is my half brother, born to my father and Diane, his first wife. He catches me staring at Mary and leans over to whisper 'Ah, I see you've seen Mary. Strange one isn't she?' I don't know how he doesn't remember her, but he doesn't. Pretty soon there after, Mrs. Kane walks in. 'Alright class' she announces 'I have some pretty big news.'

**MARY**

When Mrs. Kane announced that we were playing Romeo and Juliet, anything that just happened with Francis was erased from my mind. The minute she asked who wanted to be Juliet I jumped at the chance. I was on a real emotional high before Francis auditioned to play Romeo. I mean, he doesn't remember me so why wouldn't he? I overheard him talking to his brother Bash and apparently they think I'm weird. I mean it's not like I wasn't friends with both of them for almost 6 years. Kenna also has a crush on Bash. From what she has told me, it's because his eyes captivate her and he seems to be the knight in shining armor for his girlfriends. We had a pretty close friendship but not nearly as close as Francis and I, which is why it didn't hurt as much to hear Bash say it as it did to see Francis agree.

The bell rings after a couple minutes of me talking to Kenna and Francis talking to Bash. Desperate to get out of that classroom, I ran out only to drop my books. 'Damn it, Mary. Really?' I mutter to myself. I am almost done getting them all before I hear 'Here let me help you with that'. I knew who it was before looking up just by his voice. Francis reached down to help me pick up the rest of my books and he stopped for a minute to look over my book about Henry the second of France. 'History project?' he asked. 'No I'm actually just really interested in the time period.' I replied. We walked to class together and talked and it felt really nice. But in the end I had to remind myself he didn't remember me and I was just another girl.

The next class I have is Chemistry. I walk into the classroom but because of the book situation, I'm late. 'Ah, Miss. Stuart nice of you to join us.' I look down, blushing and walk to my seat. Halfway through the class, I look up to see what time it is, and catch Francis staring at me. He looks down quickly when he sees me, but I know it's not the first time he has looked at me this period. The teacher comes over to tell me I'm getting a new lab partner. I don't know how it didn't cross my mind that my new lab partner could be Francis, but when I saw him walk over to talk to Francis, it all clicked and I groaned. As I watched him walk over to our table I realized why every girl in school wanted him. His curls framed his face perfectly, and they bounced when he walked, almost as if they were excited about something. _No Mary, stop thinking this way_ I remind myself, I don't want to be one of those girls, chasing after something they could never have.

The lunchtime bell rings and I walk to the cafeteria. Our school's cafeteria is big, but it also has picnic tables outside, which is where I sit. I run through the lunch line to get what school calls lunch, which is probably melted cardboard, but I'm too hungry to notice. I make my way over to Kenna and her friend Greer. We talk about school and upcoming projects but I notice that someone is staring at me, Francis. 'I'll be right back' I tell the girls. I march up to Francis and tell him firmly 'Look, I don't know why you can't seem to leave me alone, but you need to back off, ok?' He looks like he's about to respond when he just grabs my face in his hands and kisses me. It's a nice kiss but it's short because I cut it off. 'What the hell, Francis?' I yell. He just replies 'I remember you, us, all of It.' and walks off. For a minute, I don't know what he's talking about, but then it clicks. He remembers our childhood. The games we use to play, the awkward dinners we used to have, and when my parents would fight and he would sneak over to play with me and distract me from it all.

After the school day is over, I ride home, and Kenna sees that something is wrong. 'Ok, Mary what's up?' she asks turning to study my face. 'Oh, nothing really, I'm just really tired.' I lie. Kenna doesn't buy it. She's known me for long enough to know when I'm lying. 'Great so what's really up?' 'Well, Francis kissed me today.' She gasps so loudly it think the whole bus hears. 'Oh my god tell me everything about it.' But thank God the bus

drops me off before I can.

When I get home I tell my mom I've had a long day and I escape to my room. My room is pretty spacious, with white walls and a queen bed in the middle to frame the whole thing. The first thing I do is grab my phone and look at the directory. The name I need is still there, somehow. It rings twice before I hear a hesitant voice answer. 'Hello, ? It's Mary Stuart, is Francis home?'


	3. Chapter 3

**MARY**

'Mary, it's been a while hasn't it? Francis isn't here right now but can I take a message for you?' she asked, and I could tell that she was still curious about why I was calling. 'No, that's fine thank you Mrs. Valois.' when I hung up I decided that I was going to talk to my mother.

'Hey mom' I said when I walked into the kitchen. She was sipping on her red wine as usual. She started this habit when I was six, after my father died. I always resented that red liquid because it made her angry and pensive. After she met Catherine and Henry, she stopped, or at least slowed down her drinking and we all got along pretty well. But then for whatever reason, they disconnected and it was hard for both of us. Mom went back to depending on the wine and I went back to depending on myself.

'Hey Mary' she said sadly. 'How was your day?' These are our normal conversations. My mother and I were never really close, especially since my dad died. He was such a happy person and he truly held our family together. We always would have family game nights or movie nights and he and my mom always seemed so happy together. Maybe that was just on the surface; maybe underneath everything was a mess. All I know is at least they put on pretty good show.

The next morning, I actually got up on time so I took a while to get ready. I put on my makeup and chose a cute skirt that I thought Francis would like.

I got on the bus, as usual, and sat next to Kenna. 'You seem more like yourself this morning.' she said. I nudged her 'I feel more like myself.' 'Hmm I wonder if a certain Francis Valois had something to do with that?' she said laughing. 'Maybe he did, maybe he didn't.' I said teasing her.

When we got to school, Kenna left me to go to my locker myself. It wasn't long before I heard a voice say 'Good Morning.' His voice was so sexy in the morning. It was gritty and deep and I loved it. 'Good Morning.' I reply. 'Where were you yesterday?' I ask. 'What do you mean? I was at home all day.' I must've looked surprised because they next thing he asks is 'Why?' 'Oh, well I called you're house yesterday to talk about what happened and your mom said you weren't home.' He looks confused and then mumbles about how he'll he will talk to his mom later and walks away.

When Kenna and I recollect after, I tell her about how strange Francis acted when I told him I called looking for him. ' Maybe he thinks you guys are moving too fast? I know some guys don't like that.' She scoffs 'Trust me.' Kenna can't hold a boyfriend for very long from what I know, but she insists it's just because they can't handle her personality. 'Yeah, maybe.' This sticks with me and eventually, I decide that I'll just talk to Francis in drama and it will all be fine.

Well, here goes nothing I think as I walk into drama, ready to ask Francis what this morning was all about, but he never shows up.

**FRANCIS**

Somehow, I knew this was going to happen. Mary was going to call or come over or something and my mother was going to find out. My mother's views on the Stuarts haven't changed for 10 years, and god forbid they change now, now that Mary is back in my life. When I get to my house, I see my mom's car and hope that my father isn't home to stop what is about to happen.

'Mother?' I call when I get inside. 'Oh, Francis what are you doing home? Are you sick? Is everything ok?' she bombards me with useless questions. 'Did Mary call last night?' She stops everything and looks down. 'Oh, um she just was wondering if you were at the house. You know you should really stay away form the Stuarts. They have been nothing but terrible to us.' 'What did they do? What did Mary do to you that was so goddamn terrible that you can't even tell me she was on the phone?' she doesn't answer and I know that she doesn't have one. 'That's what I thought. Just because you were hurt by something Marie did, doesn't mean I have to be hurt by it too.'

**MARY**

Francis is back in school by chemistry, and when he sits down next to me I can tell that something is wrong. 'Francis? What's wrong?' I ask him. 'I talked to my mom about not telling me you called.' I never wanted to come between him and his family. 'You didn't have to do that, you know.' He looked at me with such a serious look I didn't know how to react. 'Mary, your mother or my mother did something to hurt the other, but they didn't realize what they were doing to us when they did. I don't need my mother's bitterness to come between us again.' I smile back at him for a while before remembering, 'oh yeah, by the way, you're Romeo, and I'm Juliet.' I don't think his smile could've been wider. And I'm pretty sure he was thinking the exact thing I was when I heard. _We get to spend more time with each other-and kiss-._

Lunch was disappointing compared to yesterday. I was talking to Greer and Kenna, per usual, when I felt my phone buzz. _I see you._


	4. Chapter 4

**MARY**

I immediately looked around to see who sent that text, and pretty quickly saw Francis smirking at me. My heart rate slowed down and I smiled back. I saved his number on my phone and texted him. _Come sit with us. _He looked back up and strolled over slowly, not taking his eyes off of me. Kenna and Greer noticed and looked at me. 'Um, Mary? Why is Francis Valois walking over here?' Greer asked. Greer was new to our school, and our group. She didn't know the ins and outs of it all yet. 'Francis and I have been getting closer and he was standing over there alone, so I figured he could eat lunch with us. Is that ok?' Kenna and Greer exchanged a look I couldn't quite make out. 'It's fine.' 'Good afternoon, ladies.' Francis said. 'Hi' they both muttered 'Greer and I are going to get some pudding.' they said slinking away and giving me a quick smile. After they left, Francis turned to me, 'So, what are you doing tonight?' I tried to keep my cool but at that point, I'm pretty sure I was grinning like an idiot. 'I'm fairly certain that I am free.' I said blushing. 'I was thinking maybe we could go to a fancy restaurant and maybe a movie?' He said picking up my hand and tracing circles with his finger. 'I'd love to Mr. Valois.' I said. 'I will pick you up at 8 tonight.'

When I got home from school, I stuck my head in my mom's office and let her know I was leaving for a date. 'With who?' she asked, spinning around in her chair. 'Francis. Valois.' I said slowly. She stopped spinning and turned to me. 'Okay.' I was surprised 'Okay?' 'If you want to go out with Francis, go out with Francis.' I squealed and thanked her. At that point, it was time for me to start getting ready. I put on a mini skirt and a loose shirt with a pair of heels, and curled my hair. I heard the doorbell ring and saw my mom open the door. I could practically smell the tension. I walked down the stairs as fast as I could to stop the awkward conversation that was sure to follow. 'Wow, Mary, you look beautiful.' I looked down and muttered 'Thank you. Should we get going?' He guided me out of the door by putting his hand on the small of the back.

When we got to the restaurant, he walked around to my side of the car and opened the door for me. It was a small Italian restaurant with tea lights strung across the outside. 'Wow' I said. 'Is this ok?' he asked me. 'It's perfect, Francis.' I said intertwining my fingers with his. When we were seated, I asked him what I was pretty sure we were both wondering. 'So how did Catherine take it?' he shrunk back. 'After my talk with her last week, I think she's realized that it's my life and she can't control me forever.' I smiled. 'What about Marie?' "She actually took it really well.' He nodded. We small talked until the end of dinner and then we got into the car to go to the movies. When we got into the movie theater we sat in the middle of the row and munched on popcorn and skittles until the movie started. Halfway through the movie, Francis reached over and took my hand in his. We stayed that way for a while before I lifted the arm of the chair and he let me cuddle into his side. I knew the movie was over when I felt a nudge and I shot up. 'Oh crap, I fell asleep didn't I?' He looked down and chuckled. 'Yeah, but lucky for you, you're cute when you sleep.'

We drove home in pretty much silence until he turned the radio on. 'This is my favorite song Francis!' I yelled as I turned it up. I danced and sang along to it and probably looked like a maniac but Francis seemed to think it was cute. Too soon, we were back at my house. 'Oh.' I said a little bit disappointed. Before I realized it, he had lifted my chin and left a soft kiss on my lips. 'Mary, I had a really great-' but I was kissing him. I don't know what had gotten into me, I never do anything like that, but the kiss was so good-so fulfilling- I found myself craving him too much not to do anything. He put his hands on my back and my hand found their way to his hair, deepening the kiss. His tongue traced my bottom lip requesting entry, which I easily allowed. As we broke the kiss, I put my forehead to his and said 'Well, I had a great time too.' He walked me to the door and gave me a small kiss on the cheek before letting me go inside.

When I got inside, I ran upstairs and promptly screamed in my pillow. I got into my pajamas and tried to comb my hair so my mother wouldn't realize what had just happened in the car. 'Hey mom' I said, going to get some ice cream from the freezer. 'How was your date?' she was sipping her wine again so I expected nothing more. 'Pretty good.' _That's the biggest understatement of the year._ I thought to myself. I could tell my mom wasn't in the mood to talk, so I went back up to my room. I went online for a little while before I decided it was probably time to go to sleep. I slept like a baby that night and for once, was really positive about where this was going.

I did my normal routine but with a little bit of pep in my step this morning. When I got on the bus, Kenna immediately turned to me and asked 'So how was it?' I started to tease her, 'How was what?' 'How was your date? With Francis?' at this point, she was practically jumping in her seat. 'Kenna, it was wonderful' and then I went on to explain the whole thing to her, except the kiss. I felt like I should keep the kiss in between us, it was our special thing, not the whole world's.

Kenna and I walked to the hall where my locker was and we both noticed the Francis was there, waiting. 'I'll go. Have fun' she said smiling, as she walked away. I walked over to say good morning and was greeted by a deep kiss. I got caught up in it but I had to cut it off 'um, Francis, as amazing as that was, we are at school.' I told him blushing. 'Yeah I know' he said kind of sadly. I felt like I should change the subject 'So rehearsals start today' I told him. He looked up; I think we were both pretty excited. 'What scene?' 'I'm not actually sure, but I'm pretty sure we get to kiss so.' At that, the bell rang and we were dismissed to drama. I'm not sure if our relationship had a title yet, but from what I was feeling, and the actions we were pursuing, I feel like it should.

When we got to drama, we sat next to each other, and I think we both noticed that Bash and Kenna were too. 'What's up with them?' I leaned over to whisper. 'Not sure, come to think of it, Bash has been out a lot recently.' I felt like such a bad friend. I had been so wrapped up in my own happiness that I didn't even notice Kenna's.

Rehearsal was after school, so drama was pretty boring, just the normal acting techniques and monologues. We got to chemistry and that day we were doing a lab, so we had to get all fancied up in our lab coats and goggles and what not. Francis did the measuring and pouring and I did most of the writing, but let me tell you, Francis looks really cute when he concentrates.

When I got to the lunch table I had a chance to talk to Kenna before anyone else joined our table. 'I'm sorry, Kenna.' She looked at me. 'For what?' 'For not noticing you and Bash. I saw you sitting with him in drama and you guys looked pretty happy, talking to each other.' She smiled. 'Thank you, Mary. We are pretty happy.' Just then Francis walked over with Bash and Kenna looked at Bash. 'Well this is a nice surprise.' She said. Francis sat down next to me. 'I figured since you two were so cozy in drama that you should sit together at lunch too.' I noticed that almost immediately Bash grabbed Kenna's hand and I smiled.

The rest of the school day was not interesting enough to mention, so we'll just skip straight to rehearsal. We walked in holding hands and Mrs. Kane yelled 'Ah, there is my Romeo and Juliet!' we walked to our seats and since this was the first meeting we all had to have an introduction, schedule, and all of that boring stuff before we even had a chance to act. But by the end, we had practiced one scene, the kiss. Francis and I were so willing and ready to do this scene. 'Okay guys, action.' He gently put his hands on either side of my face and gave me a gentle kiss. It was nice, and it was anything but acting. It wasn't like our first kiss, aggressive and needy, or our second, passionate and steamy. It was a lighter kiss, and it amazing in it's own way.

After rehearsal, Francis drove me back home and gave me a quick kiss as I got out of the car. When I got inside, I realized my mom wasn't home so I did my homework on the kitchen table. I finished earlier than expected so I decided to call Francis. 'I'm glad you called.' he said, sounding exhausted. 'Is something wrong?' I asked. 'Not exactly. My mom wants to have you over for dinner.' 'Tonight?' I ask. 'Right now actually, if you don't mind.' 'I never mind spending time with you Francis.' I could practically hear his smile on the other side of the phone.

When I got to the Valois' house I was a bundle of nerves. So many things were running through my head. Will she like me? Will she compare me to other girlfriends? Will she compare me to who I was when I was young? These were valid questions, in my mind at least. I walked up to the door, holding my head up high and not letting Catherine get to me. From my memories, Catherine liked to get under people's skin. I rang the doorbell and Francis opened it, almost like he was waiting by the door. 'Mary, welcome to the house.' I smiled and took Francis' open hand. 'Thank you Francis, but as you seem to forget I've been to your house many times.' He stopped walking so he could look at me. 'But this is your first time here as my girlfriend.' I took an internal sigh of relief. Finally, I thought. And then smiled at the realization that I was Francis Valois' girlfriend. 'I suppose it is, isn't it?' He looked liked he had just climbed Mount Everest, like I would've rejected him.

It took a while before Catherine actually showed herself, as I was told, she was busy in the kitchen. Francis and I watched a movie until then. When dinner was actually served, I was quite impressed. The table was garnished with a green damask table cloth and the meal looked as if it was for Thanksgiving. There were mashed potatoes and gravy, some turkey and the like. 'Catherine, wow. Thank you for inviting me and cooking such a wonderful meal.' She plastered on a fake smile. 'Anytime dear.'

We ate in awkward silence until Catherine spoke up. 'So, Mary how is your mother?' I was taken aback by this question but answered confidently, 'She is wonderful.' I replied. 'Does she still have that drinking problem?' she asked, smirking. 'Mother.' Francis huffed under his breath. 'What son? I was only asking if her mother is as delusional as she once was.' I tried to hold myself together but failed. 'I-I have to go.' I stuttered as I removed my napkin and left the room.

**FRANCIS**

'Great job.' I told her as I left to find Mary. I eventually found her in the bathroom trying to wipe her tears so I wouldn't see. 'Oh, Mary. I'm so sorry about her. She likes to try and tear people apart for her own enjoyment.' I walked forward to embrace her and she continued crying on my shoulder. 'Do you want to get out of here?' I asked her. She nodded yes and asked if she could clean herself up before we did.

Five minutes later, she emerged from the bathroom, looking herself again. I didn't have any aspiration to talk to my mother after what she just did, so I left her a note letting her know we were leaving and to not expect me home for a while. Mary and I got in my car, planning to head to a local diner, because my mother had ruined dinner before we got a chance to eat. I don't understand why my mother felt the need to do something like that. Mary had been nothing but polite and sweet to her, and she just stabs her in the back like that. We grabbed something to eat quickly and I dropped her back off at her house. 'I'm sorry again.' She shook her head. 'I knew something like this was going to happen anyways. It just happened sooner than expected.' And she was right. We both knew what my mother thought of the Stuarts and I knew she would lash out a one point. Whether it be at Mary or her mother, I didn't' know, but I expected it. 'Goodnight Francis.' She whispered, and I gave her a kiss on the cheek.


	5. Chapter 5

**MARY**

When I woke up the next morning, my voice was hoarse and my throat hurt. I decided that I should probably stay home, and walked to my mom's room to let her know. 'Hey mom' I said the best I could, 'I'm going to stay home today because I don't feel well.' 'Mm' she said waving me away. I got some throat medicine from the medicine cabinet in my bathroom and texted Francis to tell him I was sick and wouldn't be there today. About five minutes later, I got a text back. _Be there soon._ I smiled because he was going to take care of me, like my boyfriend would, and that made my heart skip a beat. I let him know the door was open, but my mom was asleep so he wouldn't wake her up. I heard a knock at my door and said hoarsely 'Come in.' He walked in, and took a quick scope of my room, and my already growing pile of tissues. 'Oh, Mary.' He said, looking sympathetic. 'I'm sick.' I stuck out my bottom lip like a five year old and he smiled. 'Well, I suppose we should make you better then, shouldn't we?' He sat down next to me on my bed, and we talked. Well, mostly he talked. He told me everything that had happened to him since we were little, and how much he missed me, and thought about me every day until we reconnected. What I wish I could tell him, what I knew I couldn't was that I was there all along. That he just had to find me.

Eventually, we both fell asleep. I don't know how, but I figured that it was because when he came over it was six am. His voice is so soothing; there's no way you can't fall asleep to it. I woke up at nine, my hand on Francis' chest and my head on his shoulder. His chest was rising and falling, and he looked so peaceful when he was sleeping. I realized then that I wouldn't mind this every day. Sometimes, I would think to myself that this relationship was going too fast, but other times, I would think it was perfect. And right now, it was perfect. I sneezed loudly, but I didn't mean to and it woke Francis up. 'Wha-' He muttered, disoriented. As he wiped the sleep from his eyes, he motioned for me to lie back down. 'What have I ever done without you?' he questioned, kissing my forehead softly. This time, we didn't fall asleep. I mentioned that I was getting a little bit hungry, so he told me he would make me breakfast and headed downstairs. As tired as I was, I couldn't handle being so far from him while we were in the same house, so I went downstairs with him. 'You know what?' he turned around. 'What?' 'You look really sexy when you cook.' 'And do you know what?' I bit my lip. 'What?' 'If you weren't sick I would kiss you right now.' He said smirking. I pouted my lip for the second time that morning. 'But, what if it makes me feel better?' He walked over to me. 'Ah, what the hell.' He said taking me into his arms and kissing me tenderly.

Five minutes, later we were still kissing, and I knew we should stop but it just felt so good. We had deepened the kiss at this point, hand in hair the whole shebang. He stood up and I wrapped my legs around his waist as he carried us over to the table. He laid me down on it and started to kiss my neck. He traveled back up and his lips found his way to my mouth again as he bit my lip. 'Um Francis.' I said stopping him. 'Do you smell that?' He stopped kissing me. 'Shit.' He said going to save the pancakes from burning. 'Well, so much for pancakes.' 'And, um, other things.' I muttered, tucking a piece of hair behind my ear and blushing. He came over and lifted my chin up with his finger, 'Mary, when the time is right. Ok? Plus, I don't want our first time together to be on your kitchen table while your mom is upstairs.' He chuckled. 'I want it to be special.' I looked at him. 'And it will be. Even if it's in some really crappy motel. If it's with you, it will be.'

Eventually, Francis had to leave to make it to at least one class of the day, and I watched television and studied some of my lines. I got a text from Kenna _Are you ok? _I texted her back saying _yeah, just a little sick. _The school day was almost over and we didn't have rehearsal today, so I tried to clean myself up. After I did, I thought to myself, _if I look like this after I was cleaned up, what did I look like before? _ I shrugged it off. My mom had left for work about an hour ago and I was hungry, so I got a yogurt out of the fridge, when I heard the doorbell ring. Upon opening it, Francis was there waving my homework around saying 'I come bearing homework.' I smiled and tried to curtsy, but failed miserably. Apparently, you can't curtsy in yoga pants. We both laughed. 'So what would like to do?' I asked him, because yeah right, like I was going to do my homework with Francis and I alone. 'We could watch a movie.' He said. Movies had sort of become our thing. We sit down to watch one, and cuddle and exchange a few kisses in between. 'Sure.' 'So what shall we watch this time? I believe it might be my turn to pick, but since you're sick, I'll let you.' He kissed my nose softly. 'How about the notebook?' He kept a smile on but I could tell that the last thing he wanted to watch was the notebook so I told him 'You know what? Why don't you just pick the movie? I'm kind of put of it today.' He exhaled. 'Alright.' he said. He scanned through the pile of movies we had on my floor and chose The young Victoria. 'Good choice.' I told him as he sat down on my bed and patted the area next to him. I snuggled into him as the movie started and looked up at him. 'Thank you for taking care of me, Francis.' he kissed the top of my head. 'It's my pleasure.'

Two hours later, Francis left to go home for dinner, and I settled down to do my homework. My mom came in at around 10 pm and closed the door behind her. 'Hey Mary.' running her hand through her hair. 'Hard day at work?' I asked her. 'You…could say that.' I didn't truly know what my mother did for a living. She told me once when I was little to never ask.

I woke up at six the next morning, feeling immensely better. I got dressed and ready for school before hopping on the bus. Kenna wasn't there this time so I texted Francis. _Hey_. _Do you need me to come over?_ That was the first thing that he texted back. _No, thank you. I'm on my way to school._ I got to school and Greer saw me first. 'Mary you're back! We all missed you.' 'Thank you Greer. Have you seen Francis recently?' she smiled 'As a matter of fact, I have. He was looking for you a minute ago. He said to meet him at your locker.' I thanked her and walked to my locker.

'Hey you.' I said approaching him. 'Hey.' he said taking my hands in his and swinging them back and forth. 'I'm glad you're feeling better.' 'Oh, I am too. Although, I did enjoy your company yesterday.' 'And I enjoyed yours.' He put his forehead to mine and gave me a light kiss. 'I'm glad we can kiss again now that you're better.' I laughed 'It's not like we didn't try yesterday.' We both chuckled. "I have something for you.' He told me. 'You don't have to do that you know.' ' I know. I just thought that you would enjoy it.' He pulled out a sweatshirt from his bag. 'I heard that girl like it when their boyfriends give them their sweatshirts, so I picked out my favorite sweatshirt I have.' _Boyfriend_, I don't think I'll ever get tired of hearing that. 'Oh, Francis thank you.' I hugged the sweatshirt to my chest. It smelled like him, and I knew that we were going to get very acquainted.

After school, I got home and immediately put on the sweatshirt that had been hiding in my bag all day. It felt so natural, so right. I sent Francis a picture and he texted me back, saying _glad you like it._ With a kissy emoticon. He invited me over, telling me that Catherine was out of town and Henry was at work, so I accepted. When I got there, we rehearsed some scenes together, from the play and watched some TV in his room. It was so weird, being in Francis Valois' room. Sure, he had seen mine plenty over the past couple of days, but his room was new, and refreshing. He had white walls and overall, his room was very sophisticated, with seemed fitting. He had his bed centered against his wall, with a desk next to it. There was a TV hanging from the wall that was over a shelf full of video games and movies. We cuddled a little, of course, but we actually ended up having a pillow fight. How? I have no idea, but it was a lot of fun. He made the first move, picking up a pillow and flinging it at my head. I shrieked, but then I took my own pillow and flung it at his head. Five minutes later there are feathers flying everywhere and it looked like a winter wonderland. We were sitting on his bed, but somehow he got knocked off. I looked over the side of the bed, to see if he was ok, when he took me by my arms and pulled me down with him. When I was on the floor next to him he started tickling my stomach. 'Francis, no-, stop.' I tried to say laughing, but failed every time from lack of air.

When all was said and done, we were laying on the floor, feathers still tricking down from the sky (we got some on the ceiling fan). We got hungry from all of the exercise that had just been executed, and Francis, trying to redeem himself, told me that he would make me a homemade meal. He did, and this time we didn't try to have sex on the kitchen table, which is probably a good thing. The meal was wonderful. He made some spaghetti with meatball sauce and garlic bread on the side. 'Mm, Francis thank you for the dinner.' I told him. 'It was wonderful.' I yawned quite loudly. At this point, it was ten o'clock and we were both pretty tired. My phone rang and it read mom. 'One second, I have to take this.' I told him. 'Mom? What's up?' 'You know what Mary? I had a couple of drinks and I don't feel too good.' her speech was so slurred, I could barely understand. I hoped Francis hadn't heard that. 'Ok mom, why don't you just lay down and I'll be home soon.' I hung up. 'My mom is drunk. I have to assume the role as mother now, and go take care of her.' This was unbelievable. 'Do you just want to sleep here?' he asked me. That broke me out of my thoughts pretty quickly. I thought about it for a while. How my mom would feel in the morning, with a bad hangover and no one to care for it. Or tonight, when no one was home to hold back her hair when she threw up. But ultimately, I thought about myself, something I don't do too often. 'I would love to.'

I technically already had my pajamas on so there wasn't much for me to do. Francis however had a whole night routine he needed to complete. He told me that he was going to take a shower and for me to make myself at home. It was hard to make myself at home, however, knowing that my boyfriend was naked in the other room, especially after yesterday's escapade. When he came out, I think he forgot I was here, or maybe he was just trying to toy with my emotions, because he came out with a towel on his waist and nothing on top. I bit my lip, trying not to think anything, but oh man. His body was perfect. He muscles were chiseled and he had a six-pack that was beyond anything a girl could dream of. 'Can I help you with something?' he said breaking me out of my thoughts. 'Oh, um, no, just looking at that picture on the wall.' Nice save, Mary. 'Ok.' He walked away chuckling.

He got into bed with me about an hour later and almost instinctively, I put my head on his now, disappointingly, covered chest. He turned the light off and kissed my head, whispering, 'Good night, Mary.'


	6. Chapter 6

**FRANCIS**

I woke up with Mary asleep on my chest, her breathing slow and steady. I tried not to move with the fear of waking her. It was Saturday, and we had nowhere to be, so I let her sleep. She stirred and then muttered 'Good Morning' she said, wiping the sleep in her eyes. 'Good morning, gorgeous.' I told her giving her a light kiss on her lips. 'I could get used to this.' She sat up and perched herself up on her elbows. She was even more beautiful in the morning, with her hair a mess and the light shining on her. When she was able to comprehend what was going on around her she shot up 'Oh lord, I probably look like a mess.' I laughed softly. 'You look perfect.' She smiled 'You're sweet. But I'm going to take a shower.'

When she got out of the shower, she was definitely more modest than I was last night. I was already dressed. I had taken the liberty of doing so while Mary was in the shower. She had on a fluffy robe that only showed off her legs. I could tell by the look on her face last night that I should walk around shirtless more often, just to tease her. I snuck up and hugged her from her back while she was drying her hair. 'Hi' she said, turning around in my arms. I leaned down and kissed her, grabbing her waist to pull her to me. Eventually, we made it to the bed, and Mary's hands found their way up my shirt. 'Good Morning Ladies and Gentleman.' My brother walked in announcing himself. 'Bash, Oh my god!' I said, trying to cover myself. 'Mary, if you would kindly stop trying to have sex my brother while I am in the house, it would be much appreciated.' She slinked away. 'Yeah, I'm just going to go now. Sorry, Francis I guess we will just have to "have sex" another time.' 'Bash, we weren't going to have sex. We were just making out.' He sat down on my bed, and I had to shift awkwardly. 'Has anyone ever told you that you aren't a very good liar? Now go take a shower.' And I needed one. Preferably one of the colder variety.

**MARY**

Now that that embarrassment was over, I drove back home. I knew my mom was going to be mad, but it depended on how drunk she was last night. If she remembers me saying I was coming, she'll be pretty mad. But otherwise, we should be fine. 'Hey, mom' I said coming into the house cautiously. 'Mary, where were you last night?' great. 'I slept over at the Valois'. Look, mom, I'm sorry no one was there to hold your hair back this morning. I'm sorry you had to act like an adult for once.' She took a step back, almost as if I had slapped her. And in a way, I kind of did. 'I see what you think of me now, Mary.' I was on a confidence high, and I wasn't coming down anytime soon. 'What I think of you is that you are immature. Yes, dad died. I miss him too. But you don't see me drinking my sorrows away, or running off until five in the morning to party. You are the adult here mom. Not me, and I'm sick and tired of having to be the one to clean the house and do the taxes while you sit and drink your life away.'

I needed to get out of the house. I didn't know where I was going to go, but I just needed to leave. I went to the first place I could think of, Kenna's house. She was always there for me when times got tough; whether I was told no, I couldn't play with Francis anymore or my mom would disappear for two nights in a row. I knocked on her door. 'Mary, oh my gosh are you ok?' I tried to stay strong, 'Umm, no.' I broke down to sobs. 'I told my mom how I felt and now I don't think she loves me.' I didn't notice until much later that Bash was on the couch, but I did notice her turn around and mouth _call Francis_. Francis arrived pretty quickly, so I'm guessing Bash sent him something like Mary's in trouble or something like that. 'What happened?' He asked Kenna, as I got switched to Francis' arms to hold me. 'She confronted her mom.' 'Oh, Mary, you did the right thing. It's going to be alright. Shhh.' He told me. It took a lot of reassurance, a whole lot of him holding me, and a movie session to calm me down. 'I'm sorry for being such a mess.' I said a while later. 'You're not a mess. You were scared for your relationship and you reacted perfectly fine.' He kissed my forehead. 'And thank you for always being there for me. I couldn't ask for a better boyfriend.' He smiled at the mention of the word.

We left together, and I apologized to Kenna for bombarding her house and ruining her date. 'Mary, really, it's no problem.' But I felt terrible. 'Do you want me to come in the house with you?' 'If you would. I don't want to do this alone.' We went inside together, only to find a note. _Mary_, it said, _I took what you said into consideration, and have made the decision to go to rehab. I'm sorry I've put you through all of this. I didn't realize it hurt you so much. In regards to where you will be staying, I called Catherine, and we worked it out where you can stay over there for a couple weeks, and if he wants, Francis can stay here. I love you and I will try to call you, and be home in a couple of weeks. Love, mom. _I passed the note to Francis and he smiled. 'This is really great. Do you want to stay here tonight? For some familiarity before it gets crazy?' 'As long as I have you.' I told him.

'Hey, what should we eat for dinner?' he asked squeezing my knee. 'How about some takeout and Netflix?' 'Sure.' he smiled back. We ordered some Chinese food and decided to watch Cake Boss. I missed my mom but it was really nice to be able to spend a lot of time with Francis. I was happy she was getting her life back on track, for the both of us. Francis had already gotten some clothes from his house, and I was guessing we were going to be spending a lot more time at my house than his. His family was always at his house, and we were almost 18, so we could take care of ourselves.

Our night routines were pretty similar. shower, wash face, brush teeth, put on pajamas, and go to sleep. According to Catherine, Francis should sleep in my mom's room, and I should sleep in mine. However, Catherine wasn't here, so we just slept in the same bed. Sleeping next to Francis was calming. His breathing was calming and it was almost like sleeping with a big teddy bear. We feel asleep holding each other. I honestly believe that the best sleep I've ever gotten has been in Francis' arms.

In the morning, Francis drove me to school and I met up with Kenna and my locker. We talked about the play and her and Bash, before she gasped. 'Mary. I think you should see this.' 'What?' I turned around and saw Francis hugging Greer. She stood on her tiptoes to kiss him, and she was smiling up at him, but his back was turned to me so I couldn't tell what he was doing. I walked up calmly, 'Um, Francis can we talk alone?' He dropped her almost immediately after hearing my voice. 'Sure.' 'Why in the world were you hugging Greer?' He looked confused. 'Hugging? No, Mary. She fell and I was helping her up.' I was starting to cry. 'Francis, don't lie to me. You aren't making it any better.' 'Mary, I'm not lying to you.' I wiped a tear. 'I have a lot going on in my life at the moment, as you know, and this is not helping.' 'Mary, you're overreacting.' 'You kissed her, Francis. And I honestly don't need this right now. Especially, if you are going around kissing other girls.' He backed up and looked shocked. 'What are you trying to say?' A single tear made its way down my cheek. 'I think we should take a break.' And that was it. It was over, all of the cuddling and kissing, the sleeping next to each other. I had no one.

I returned to Kenna. 'Hey, is everything ok with Francis?' The last thing that I wanted was to make a scene. 'Um, yeah. It's all good.' We walked to drama together and I cursed myself for not doing it all later. I had lied to Kenna, so I still had to sit next to Francis and act like everything was great. My non-existent relationship was perfect. I leaned over to Francis and whispered 'I haven't told Kenna yet, act like everything is normal.' He smiled back at me. That smile shattered my heart. I was so very close to tears that I raised my hand and asked to go to the bathroom. I walked out normally, not to cause panic, but once I was out of view, I broke. I ran to the bathroom, and tried to calm down. My tears turned into sobs, which were violent and sporadic. About five minutes later, I was calmed down enough to return to class. Kenna leaned over to ask, 'Are you ok? You were gone for a while.' 'Yeah, I'm fine.' But I turned to Francis, and he looked at me sympathetically. He knew I had been crying, and from what I could tell, he looked like he was going to too. After drama, I worked up the guts to tell Kenna. 'I have something I have to tell you.' She turned around. 'Holy crap, are you pregnant?' she asked me, her eyes wide. 'What? No, Kenna. Francis and I broke up.' 'Oh, Mary.' She enveloped me in a hug. 'I've got to go to chemistry. Kenna- um you need to let go now.' 'Oh, ok.' I walked into class late, again. It was disappointing to see myself falling into bad habits again. Francis was there waiting for me. There were few words exchanged. Only the ones necessary for the class, and even then, very few.

When Greer came to sit with us at lunch, I would not have it. 'No, you do not get to ruin my relationship, and still sit with us.' She put on her best innocent face to say, 'Did something happen with Francis?' I was so tired of her, it had been a long day, and I didn't want a fight in the middle of the cafeteria. 'Fine, Greer. You win. Sit here. I'm leaving.' I went home, and laid on my bed and cried. 'How did my life get so screwed up?' I asked myself. I fell asleep and woke up to my alarm clock going off. I jumped up to turn it off. There wasn't any school today, because of a teacher workday. I made myself some eggs, something I knew Francis would have done, if he were here. I told myself to toughen up, that I didn't need Francis. I ate my eggs in silence and went back upstairs to watch some TV, willing myself not to think about Francis or our relationship.


	7. Chapter 7

**FRANCIS**

I was miserable without Mary. I know we had only been together for a couple of weeks, but I knew now that I depended on her like I depended on my heart to beat. I went about the day thinking of what Mary was doing, what we would be doing right now, and everything reminded me of her. The mornings were the worst. I had gotten used to waking up and seeing her beautiful face in the morning, and exchanging a few kisses. I decided to put on my sweatshirt before I remembered that I had given it to Mary. I couldn't help but wonder if she still wore it. I moped down the stairs and was greeted by Bash. 'Oh, pick yourself up Francis. There are many, many girls that would jump at the chance to date you. Mary wasn't the first, and she won't be the last.' I sat down and sighed, replying 'But, Mary, she was different. She made me feel a way no other girl had ever made me feel before.' Bash rolled his eyes. 'I swear, if you say it was true love, I will push you off of that chair.' But I'm sure it was, or at least it definitely could have evolved to that. 'I'm really not in the mood to be pushed off of a chair this morning, so I'll keep my mouth shut.' 'Good. I'm going to be gone today, as I would happen to have a date with Kenna. We are going to see a movie.' Thanks, Bash. This is exactly what I need to be hearing right now. Being his brother, I had to ask 'How are you and Kenna doing?' I could tell that he was glad I asked. 'We are great, definitely better than you and Mary at the moment.' He laughed and I rolled my eyes. Why did he have to do this? 'I'm going to pick up Kenna. Why don't you come with me? It looks like you need it.' And I did.

**MARY**

Kenna came over for a couple of hours, because I told her I was not dealing with the breakup very well. She rang the doorbell and I answered, in my pajama shorts and Francis' sweatshirt that I'm sure he had forgotten about by now. I had bags under my eyes, and mascara I hadn't taken off last night puddled under my lashes. 'Oh, sweetie. I knew this was going to be hard on you, but I didn't know it was going to be this hard.' Says Kenna, who never had a single hair out of place. 'Will you watch a movie with me?' I asked her, and I knew how painful this was going to be. But sometimes, a girl just has to let it all out. 'Sure, what do you want to watch?' I scanned my movies very slowly. 'How about the notebook?' I asked her. 'I'm always up for that.' She told me. We got halfway through the movie before I turned to her, tears welling up in my eyes. 'Francis hated this movie.' 'Come here' she said patting the couch next to her. I sat next to her, and she held me. At this point, it didn't matter who wanted to comfort me. I just decided to take it.

The doorbell rang suddenly, and Kenna turned to me. 'I'm going on a date with Bash and I told him to pick me up here. I hope that's ok.' I didn't honestly care how Bash saw me so I didn't even try to clean myself up. She swung open the door and the first thing I saw was a very surprised and very messy Francis. Kenna noticed at the same time I did. 'Holy crap. Bash why would you bring Francis to Mary's house?' 'Oh, well I thought maybe she would be in her bed or something. Sorry, guys.' He said, running his fingers through his hair. I wished I had been one of those girls who could just try and win her boyfriend back, but I was a mess instead. 'We were just watching the Notebook.' I said, and I could've sworn I heard Francis mutter, I always hated that movie.

**FRANCIS**

The first thing I noticed was that she was wearing my sweatshirt. That let me know that she missed me, even if it was a tiny fraction. The next thing I noticed was that she was a mess. A complete and udder mess. Presumably what was right now. I wanted my sweatshirt back, but I also wasn't losing hope. I was going to get her back, somehow. She had been watching the Notebook. I hated that movie, but I watched it for her, to be with her. And the thought of her watching it alone, made me tear up a little bit. I turned away. 'A little dust in my eye.' I laughed it off, but I could tell Mary wasn't buying it. 'Kenna, Bash, I'm sorry, I really tried.' She told them running off to wipe off her tears. I wanted so badly to run in and wipe them for her. I started to move forward, instinctively, but Bash stopped me. 'Let her go, Francis.'

**MARY**

I wanted him to come after me. To save me, and hold me. Oh, Lord, I wanted I wanted him to hold me. But he didn't come after me, and he wouldn't. I ran upstairs and cried on my bed. The place we had laid together, talking about our lives, the place that we made out, and loved each other. I couldn't make pancakes anymore. I tried once, but I ended up staring at the kitchen table, and when they burned, that just made me cry even more. I was broken like a china doll someone had taken and smashed to the floor. I know I broke up with him, but that didn't make it any easier. I missed him just as much as if he had told me it was over because he couldn't stand me. I missed his perfect curls, and the way he smiled at me when he broke off a kiss.

I collected myself and walked back downstairs, expecting no one to be there anymore. Instead, I see a head of blonde curls staring at the wall. We made eye contact and said 'oh, Francis, hi.' He walked up to me. 'I just wanted to make sure you are ok.' I sighed. 'You can't do this anymore. We aren't dating. It's not your job to take care of me.' It hurt me a lot to say this, and tears started to fall. 'Mary, it is my job. Whether we are together or not, ever since we were little, I've taken care of you. And I'm not going to stop now.' 'I miss you.' I looked up to the ceiling to try to stop the tears. 'I miss everything about you. About us. I miss your kisses, and your cuddles, and your cooking.' he laughed. 'Well, I miss your smile, and your enthusiasm, and the way you love when I bite your lip.' I had an entire list in my head that would have taken years to say. 'I do love it when you do that.' he moved forward, and our lips were only inches apart. My breathing had become labored. 'I want…' he moved closer. 'What do you want Mary?' I didn't even answer him before our lips came crashing down on each other. He pulled on my lip and I smiled.

After an intense five minutes of this, I asked what we were both thinking. 'Does this mean that we are back together?' he looked at me. 'Do you want us to be?' I took his hand and said 'More than anything.' His smile was bigger than I had ever seen it. 'Then I guess we are.'

We walked into school the next day holding hands and smiling. There were whispers, but most of them were about how Greer had thrown herself at him and looked desperate. In a way, I was mad at her, but at the other time, I felt bad for her. When the Valois' and my family had split up, I was the source of the rumors, and it doesn't feel good. I walked into the bathroom before class and saw Greer crying. She worked quickly to wipe away her tears. 'Oh. Congratulations Mary. You got him.' 'Greer, I'm still foggy on what happened, and I'm sorry about the things people are saying, but he was always mine.' Francis later cleared everything up for me, and Greer and I have never been as close as we used to be.

When Kenna heard the news, I think she may have been more excited than I was. She ran towards me and I had to let go of Francis' hand to accept her hug. 'Guys I'm so glad that you are back together. We should totally go on a double date.' I returned to Francis and he put his head on my shoulder while he hugged me. 'Kenna, while it felt like a lifetime, we were only broken up for one day.' I looked at him. 'But I'm sure we would love to go on a double date.' She squealed. 'Great, we'll all meet at the Valois' at 8.' She walked away before either of us had a chance to protest. 'Well, I guess they've been planning that for a while.' He chuckled. 'Yep, I suppose we have a date to get ready for.' He drove me home, and since our breakup was so sudden, he still had some clothes at my house, so we both just got ready there. We acted like we hadn't even broken up, and it was a nice and familiar feeling. We hustled around each other, and we both just changed in front of each other, because we figured, we both had on our undergarments and we would both see each other like this eventually. I wore a pair of jeans and Francis' tee shirt he had lent me, and he wore some sweatpants and his tee shirt. We didn't bother to get too dressed up because we figured we would just be watching a movie and eating popcorn.

We got back to his house and Francis and I just walked in. 'Oh, God.' I yelled, while Francis covered my eyes, and he looked away. Kenna and Bash were lying on the couch, or should I say lying on top of each other, on the couch. Naked, if I might add. Kenna jumped up, concealing herself with her shirt. 'Mary, Francis, you guys are early.' 'We thought we could just start a little earlier. Can I open my eyes now?' I heard some bustling and things being put on. 'We're both decent.' Francis leaned over to me and whispered, 'Mark that as a spot I will never sit again.' 'I missed you.' I told him, and leaned into a kiss. Bash cleared his throat, 'We don't need a repeat of what just happened, kids.' Kenna tried, but failed miserably to conceal the awkwardness. 'Should we start the movie?' 'We'll take the floor.' I said, and Francis agreed.

It was getting late, and the movie had ended about an hour ago. We were all just talking, and Francis asked me if I wanted to sleep over. Kenna told me 'OH, yeah, I'm staying over too. We could all have like a sleepover.' And from the look in Bash's eyes, I would say that was not his intention when he asked her to sleep over. 'In that case, Francis, would you like to stay at my house. For all of our sakes?' I don't think I had ever seen someone nod faster.

We were lying in bed, just talking and watching some TV and relaxing. 'I wonder what Bash and Kenna are doing right now.' I told him. 'I don't know, but I have a pretty good idea.' He smirked. 'I missed you so much. And I don't think I will ever stop telling you that.' He kissed my nose. 'I won't get tired of hearing it, I can tell you that.' We were lying in the dark, when I heard him turn over. 'Mary, I love you.' I turned towards him, blushing in the dark and hoping that he couldn't see. 'I love you too.'


	8. Chapter 8

**MARY**

I had waited so long to hear those words. I wanted to say them so badly, but I was nervous, and he said them first. I fell asleep with the biggest smile on my face, and I don't think it went away. I woke up first and was taking a shower when Francis walked into the bathroom. 'Oh, sorry.' He said, still not turning around. I was trying to cover myself up but I only have so many hands, and my shower was all glass. 'Francis, please leave.' I told him. And he backed out of the bathroom slowly, laughing with his hands up. I was mortified, but Francis definitely did not seem to be. I came out in a towel, because my self-confidence had gone up after I sat in the shower for about ten minutes. 'Hello.' He said, coming up behind me and kissing my neck. 'Hello.' I turned around to deepen the kiss. 'I need to get dressed.' I told him. 'I would beg to differ.' He smiled and walked towards me. I grabbed some clothes and ducked below his arms. I laughed as he pouted and I went to get dressed.

'I have a surprise for you.' He told me, after I had gotten dressed. I was making breakfast for the both of us, because Francis had cooked for me so often. 'Really? What is it?' somehow he had managed to hide a gigantic teddy bear behind his small torso. 'Oh, Francis, it's wonderful.' I gave it a hug and Francis' voice came out of it saying 'Will you go to prom with me?' There was no question about it. 'Of course I will.' I gave him a kiss, and went back to my eggs, not repeating our previous incident.

I called Kenna to let her know that we were going to prom, and she told me that Bash had asked her earlier that day. 'We should totally go dress shopping.' 'Sure, I'll come pick you up.' I picked her up and we went to a small shop in the city. It had so many types of dresses, that when we walked in we were practically slapped by color. 'Oh. Kenna, look at this dress.' I picked up the bottom of the dress and stroked it. It was a deep plum chiffon dress with a sweetheart neckline. 'Mary you have to try that on.' So I did. I came out of the dressing room and twirled around. The dress flows around my body and when I twirl, it twirls with me. 'I think that this might be the one.' Kenna looked around and tried on some very beautiful dresses before deciding on a little black dress that she said she thought Bash would love.

I got back to my house and yelled out, 'Francis, don't look!' the dress was in a bag, so when he came around the corner I didn't have a heart attack. He grabbed my waist and pulled me to him. 'Why? Are you naked again?' He asked. I stood up on my tiptoes to kiss his nose. 'You would sure like me to be.' I told him teasing. I started to walk away but he twirled me back to him. 'You know, we can change that.' He started pulling my sleeve down my arm, and I let him, until I snapped back into reality. 'Not today, we can't.' I told him, walking up the stairs. I heard him chuckle before I went in my room. I figured that if Francis was alone in the house, he would for sure sneak a peek and my dress if it were in my closet, so I put it in my mom's closet instead.

Francis and I decided that it was still early in the afternoon, so we should go to the mall. We drove and talked about prom, and I told him that he was going to have to get ready at his house, for the element of surprise. 'I'll just get ready at my house, with Kenna, and you can get ready with Bash and then come over.' He was whining because he wanted to see me as soon as the dress was on. 'Francis, it takes all of two seconds to get from your house to mine.' I told him. In truth, even though this was a really fun and exciting time for me, it was hard without my mom. I was really proud of her for going to rehab, but I missed her, and I wanted her to be involved with all of this. Francis and all of my friends were great with distracting me from this point, and I'm sure they would've been there as a shoulder to cry on, but I never really told them that I felt this way. Francis leaned over to squeeze my knee. 'Hey, what are you thinking about?' I smiled, and I'm sure it looked as fake as it was. 'Oh, just prom.' My thought was reassured by Francis saying, 'Now what are you really thinking about?' I was so tired of putting on a brave face for everyone, and I just broke. 'I miss my mom. She would've loved to be here for this, and for us. I've just been thinking ever since she left, oh she would've loved to do this with me, or that.' He parked so he could turn towards me. 'Why have you never told me any of this?' I shrugged 'I don't know. I just want to be the happy Mary all of the time. I figured that if I pretended I was, I eventually would be. I am happy, with all of my friends, and with you. But, the moments I had with my mom, when she wasn't drunk, were wonderful. And thinking of those is what makes me upset.'

I cried and Francis held me for a while before we actually went into the mall. We shopped and got ice cream together, before we headed back to my house. Francis had left for a couple of minutes, to go get some more clothes, so I went upstairs to admire my dress again. I tried it on, but not long after it was on, Francis announced himself by walking up the stairs. I panicked, and quickly grabbed a robe from my bathroom. I laid under the covers and Francis walked into the room. 'Did you just take a shower?' he pouted. 'You didn't even give me the chance to accidentally see you.' 'You know, I will get you back for that one day.' He chuckled and said, 'Hey, knock yourself out. I shower every morning and night so pick your time.' I had the overwhelming urge to throw something at him, but also kiss him. It was a strange phenomenon. 'Maybe I will.' He left eventually and I took off the dress and put it back neatly. I took an actual shower afterwards, and he, amazingly, didn't accidently walk in on me.

'I'm impressed, Mr. Valois.' 'With what?' he asked. 'Your self-control. Hell, I'm impressed with my self control.' He stood up and walked over to me. 'It does take a lot to resist your body.' 'You know exactly what to say, don't you?' 'So I've been told.' We kissed, and decided to continue the kiss upstairs, in my bed. There was no one there to interrupt us this time, but I knew what we both wanted. And this was not it. My breathing was labored, but I worked up enough breath, and courage to say 'Francis, wait. This isn't right. Not yet.' He hung his head in defeat. I put a hand on his now bare chest. 'But soon, oh please, soon.' He collapsed next to me, and I felt bad, but I didn't want it to just be careless. 'I love you, Mary. And I want to express my love to you, but I want to when you are ready. I just want you to know that.' I gave him a light kiss before he excused himself to take a shower before bed.

When I woke up in the morning, I heard something moving downstairs. I shook Francis awake. 'What is it, Mary?' he asked me, still asleep. 'I heard something downstairs.' He got out of bed reluctantly and I heard him walk downstairs before he yelled, 'Um, Mary. You might want to come see this.' I jumped up and ran down the stairs, and my eyes couldn't believe it.

'Mom, you're back.' I engulfed her in a hug, and she stroked my hair. Something she hasn't done since I was five years old. 'Oh, sweetie, I'm sorry that I didn't call you. It was really hard, but I knocked my problem, and now you have nothing to worry about.' She turned to Francis, 'Thank you for taking care of her, Francis.' 'It was really my please, Mrs. Stewart.' She pulled me back. 'Now, why don't you two tell me everything that I missed?' I was the one that mostly talked, and of course we left out the almost sex. But I also told her the hard stuff, like the breakup and missing her. When I asked if she would come to see my prom dress she gladly accepted. She helped me zip it up and she looked me over. 'It's beautiful, Mary.' 'You think so? Kenna helped me pick it out.' I know that I was jumping into all of this really quickly, and that people relapse all the time, but she was different this time around. Everything about her was different, in a good way.

I was about to go to sleep, and Francis had left about an hour ago, since my mom was home. It was hard to get comfortable without his warm embrace, but somehow I managed. My mom knocked on the door and I said come in. 'Hey.' She said sitting down on the bed. 'I'm really glad you're back.' I told her, genuinely. 'So am I, Mary. I won't let you down like I have in the past, I promise.' And I believed her. I went to sleep that night, dreaming of Francis, and my mom, finally being the mom she always should've been.


	9. Chapter 9

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: THIS CHAPTER IS RATED M TO BE SAFE**

**FRANCIS**

The phone rang, once, then twice. 'Hello.' her voice was sweet like honey. 'Where are you? You're going to miss this.' 'I know, I know. My mom is getting ready, and taking forever.' I was pacing at his point. 'Mary, I can't be Romeo without my Juliet.' 'I'm here. I'm walking in right now.' She hung up as she walked in and gave me a quick kiss, but not before she was whisked away to get dressed. She came out in a red corseted dress, with damask on it, and the train flowed behind her like a river. 'Come on guys, the play is starting!' Kenna ushered us to the stage.

"Two households, both alike in dignity,

In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,

From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,

Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.

From forth the fatal loins of these two foes

A pair of star-cross'd lovers take their life;

Whose misadventured piteous overthrows

Do with their death bury their parents' strife.

The fearful passage of their death-mark'd love,

And the continuance of their parents' rage,

Which, but their children's end, nought could remove,

Is now the two hours' traffic of our stage;

The which if you with patient ears attend,

What here shall miss, our toil shall strive to mend."…

The curtain closed as the crowd cheered. 'Great job everyone!' the director called. 'Mary wanted me to give this to you.' Kenna said as she slipped a folded piece of paper in my hand. I opened it, and it said, in Mary's messy script, _meet me in my dressing room. _I knocked on the door, and an arm reached out to pull me in. 'Good performance, Mr. Valois.' She said as she stood on her toes to hover her lips over mine. 'And to you, Ms. Stewart.' I closed the space between us, and she quickly reached up to entangle her hands in my hair. I started to untie the corset and trailed my kisses down her neck. 'Mary what should we do…' We broke apart instantly and she smoothed out her hair. 'Oh, um, I'll just let myself out then.' Neither of us said anything as she left, and I went to change.

**MARY**

Francis left, and before I had the chance to get dressed, my mom walked in. 'Sweetie, you were wonderful. I have an AA meeting I have to go to, so I'll be out of town tonight. Maybe you could get a ride from Francis.' I told Francis what she had told me, and even after our awkward encounter, agreed to take me home. We drove home, and it felt really nice to have him back, even if he was only gone for one day. I threw my key down on the couch and slouched into it. 'Oh my God, I just need to sit for five minutes.' I said, running my hands through my hair. 'I know.' He whispered. 'Do you want to watch The Notebook?' 'That sounds really nice right now.'

He put his arm around my shoulders and we shared an innocent kiss. He reached up and put his hand on my cheek, and I put my hand on his. He runs his tongue around my bottom lip, eager to pass. He moved his hand to my hair, and deepened the kiss. We continued to make out for about ten minutes before I breathed out, 'We should, um go upstairs.' He nodded and then reconnected our lips as I wrapped my legs around his waist as he laid me down on the bed and moved his lips to my neck. He slowly moved his hand up my shirt and around my back. We sat up and I pulled his shirt over his head, reveling at the sight of his torso. He started pulling at the hem of my shirt, and I helped him pull it off. He stared trailing kisses down my body, starting at my neck and making his way down to my naval, and I moaned. A sudden surge of confidence washed over me, and I started unbuckling his jeans. He takes control, and removes his belt and pulls down his jeans while I take off my sweatpants. We stared at each other for a minute before resuming our tender kisses. 'You're so beautiful, Mary.' I smiled as he stroked my outer thigh, while still kissing me. He lips trailed down my body, getting lower each time, and I threw my head back in pleasure.

**FRANCIS**

We collapsed next to each other, breathing heavily. We exchanged a few kisses and she moved closer, resting her head on my chest. And soon enough, sleep overcame both of us.

When I woke up the next morning, the sun shining through the blinds, and Mary was still asleep on my bare chest. I maneuvered out from underneath, careful not to wake her, and she quickly readjusted, grabbing onto the pillow. I quietly got dressed and slipped down the stairs to make some hazelnut coffee, her favorite. As I was frying some eggs to go along with the coffee, Mary appeared, leaning against the doorframe. She came up behind me and wrapped he arms around my waist, leaving kisses on my back. I smiled and flipped the egg, turning around in her arms, giving her a kiss on the nose before she took her coffee and sat at the breakfast table. I walked over to give her her food, and she looked up at me and said, 'Mm, thank you.' We sat down and ate in silence, and Mary took my plate when I was done. I felt bad for just sitting there, so I walked over to her. 'Let me help you with that.' I told her, as I took the plate so I could scrub it. We heard the door open, and Marie walked in, as drunk as ever. 'Mary and Francis! I'm so glad that you too are bonding again.' She spat out in a drunken slur. 'You know what?' she poked my chest. 'I had sex with your father last night. But shhhh, don't tell Catherine.' I backed away, surprise striking my features. 'Mom? What are you talking about?' she turned to me and whispered, 'She's probably too drunk to know what she's saying.' Marie heard this and yelled 'No, I had sex alright. Henry and I started to-' 'Okay then, let's get you upstairs.' Mary said, helping her mother up the stairs.

**MARY**

I helped my mom into her bed, and she started spewing out insults about how much of a failure I was. I gave her some Benadryl and snuck out of her room. I walked back into my room and sank down onto my bed, where Francis was sitting. He took me into his arms and started stroking my hair, and neither one of us said anything, because we didn't have to. Eventually, I whispered 'How did a night of so much happiness turn into this?' I asked him. 'I don't know Mary, but this is the way life works. You can never be happy for too long before something is bound to happen.' I looked up at him, and in that moment I just wanted him to kiss me. And somehow, almost like he read my mind, he leaned down to kiss me softly.


	10. Chapter 10

**MARY**

It's prom night, the night when everyone dresses up to dance together for the last time before graduation. High school is ending, and I'll miss being able to see everyone that I love everyday at school. Francis drove me to school like he has been recently, and we both met up with Kenna and Bash. They were holding hands and staring into each other's eyes and I whispered to Francis 'Are you sure that we should bother them? They look pretty content without us bothering them.' Kenna and Bash noticed us pretty quickly after that, and Kenna ushered us over to her. We talked about finals, and while the guys talked about sport cars or whatever, we talked about prom. 'Ok, so tonight, you're coming over at like five to get ready right?' she nodded with a huge smile on my face. 'Ok, so I'll paint nails and makeup, you can do hair, and I think that we can get our own dresses on.' 'Your mom is taking pictures, right?' my smile immediately faltered, but I tried to bring it back before she noticed. 'Mary, what's wrong?' obviously, she noticed. 'My mom can't take pictures anymore. She'll be busy.' Kenna wasn't taking it. My smile was permanently gone at this point, and Francis noticed. He slid over and put his arms around my waist. 'What are you girls talking about?' he asked, trying to change the subject. 'Oh, just prom.' Kenna said, smiling down as Bash kissed her forehead. 'That's at like eight right?' Bash said teasing us. Kenna playfully slapped his chest, 'Yes, Bash, you two are picking us up at seven right?' 'We wouldn't miss it for the world.'

The rest of the school day went by relatively slowly, and nothing important happened. I climbed into Francis' car and kissed him. 'Hey.' I said. It was three o'clock and I needed to get home and get ready. He drove me home and told me 'So I will see you at seven, beautiful.' I blushed as he kissed my cheek, and I walked inside. Kenna arrived about two hours later, and when I opened the door, I was greeted by 'I'm so sorry, Bash and I got caught up on something and I swear I'm so sorry.' 'Kenna, really, it's fine.' She came in, and we grabbed some yogurt before heading upstairs. I painted Kenna's nails red, and mine were a beige color. It took longer than expected to finish makeup, because Kenna and I were laughing so hard at each other's jokes. Kenna curled my hair and swept it to the side with a braid. I slipped my dress on and stood in front of the mirror, smoothing out the wrinkles. Kenna did the same, and we gave each other the final glance of approval. 'You look perfect, Mary.' 'Kenna, you do too. Bash will love you.'

We walked downstairs, ready to open the door, and I asked her 'What are your plans for after prom?' She looked at me, 'Well, I think that we are going back to his house. And you guys?' I smiled. Francis had told me earlier that he had gotten us a hotel room, and I was excited then, but I was more excited now because of our previous actions. 'I believe that we are getting a hotel.' She looked at me at put two and two together. 'Mary Stewart. You did not.' I laughed 'Why is that so unbelievable to you?' 'It's not, I just didn't expect it.' At that moment the doorbell rang, and I yelled 'Coming!' I opened the door, and of course Francis was the one who was waiting to come in first, since he had been here so often, I was guessing it felt like a second home. He looked me over for a couple of minutes, and I picked up my skirt and twirled, and landed back in his arms. 'I think that you look completely ravishing.' I smiled 'You do too.' After several minutes of talking, and one particular instance of Francis whispering asking me how I take the dress off, for later use, we left the house. There weren't many pictures other than the ones that we took on our phones because my mother was too drunk to notice.

We walked into the gym, where prom was, and marveled at the sight. The gym had been transformed into a winter wonderland. Fake snow was falling down from the ceiling, glittery snowflakes were positioned across the floor, and on the stage was a crown fitted for a king and queen. Not wasting any time, Francis bowed down with his hand extended and asked, 'May I have this dance?' I put my hand in his, and we walked onto the dance floor. I leaned onto his shoulder and he put his hands on my waist. 'I love you.' I told him, for the second time. 'I love you too.' He said, kissing my nose lightly. Some of the songs were fast, and we danced wildly, and others were slow, and we slow danced.

When it was time to announce king and queen, we all lined up in the front of the gym. 'Thank you everyone, for coming tonight, and now it is time to announce the prom king and queen.' There was an awkward silence as the principal opened the card. 'Our king and queen for this years prom is Francis Valois and Mary Stuart!' It took me a minute to process what was happening. Kenna was pushing me to the stage, and Francis was holding my hand. Francis was crowned first, and sat down in the chair marked as king, while the principal put a crown on my head. We weren't asked to give a speech, but we were asked to dance. Everyone moved to the side as Francis and I made our way to the floor. The spotlight was moved to capture us, while everyone stared. All of the girls were staring at Francis as I put my head on his shoulder so I brought my head back up and gave him a kiss. Half of the girls awed and the other half scowled at me, because how dare I kiss their Francis.

Our dance was the last event before everyone was released. Kenna and Bash made their way back to the Valois' house, and Francis helped me into the car to drive to our hotel. Before he even started the car, he leaned over and kissed me, and as we broke apart, he whispered in my ear, 'That is only the beginning.' And squeezed my knee. I could hardy contain my excitement as we pulled up to the hotel, and checked in. Once the door opened, we both had all of two seconds to look around before our lips were on each other's. We wasted no time, as he started to unzip my dress, and I tugged off his jacket. I could already tell that on my part undressing was going to be a long task. 'You have too many clothes on.' I breathed in between kisses. And he smiled and said 'We should fix that.' He started unbuttoning his shirt and once he had finished, he let me take it off. It had only been a week since our last encounter, but missed the feel of his bare skin against mine. At this point, my dress was on the floor somewhere, and Francis' clothes were scattered across the room. As we fell onto the bed, Francis slipped off the rest of his clothing and helped me with mine.

We fell asleep together, and Francis, as always, woke up earlier. He ordered room service, without my knowing, so I woke up to plates upon plates sitting on the table. 'Francis, what is this?' I asked, wiping the exhaustion from my eyes. 'I figured that the queen would like some breakfast.' He was very proud of himself for that one, I could tell. 'Will the king be dining with me this morning?' I got up, holding the sheet to my skin. I slipped on a robe from the bathroom and joined him. The food was delicious. It was a platter with eggs, pancakes, and fruit. We fed each other for a while before I could not eat anymore because I felt like I would burst. I excused myself for a shower, and afterwards, I was hit with the realization that I had forgotten clothes. I poked my head out of the bathroom and asked, 'Francis, could you run to my house and get me some clothes? I forgot to bring an extra pair.' He sighed, and I could tell that he didn't want to do it, but being the best boyfriend ever, he agreed.

He returned after about twenty minutes with a cute flower dress that I loved. 'I love this dress, thank you.' I got dressed and put my dress from last night into a bag that the hotel had given us. 'Are you ready to go?' I asked him, before he replied 'I think I forgot something.' I wrinkled my brow. 'What?' He gave me a kiss and said 'Ok, now I'm ready.'

It was Saturday, so we didn't have anywhere to be after we left the hotel. 'Do you want to see a movie?' We hadn't seen one in theaters for a while, so we both agreed that that sounded like fun and headed there. As we were buying our tickets I noticed a couple in front of us that looked vaguely familiar. 'Is that Bash and Kenna?' I asked Francis. 'I think it is. Should we say hi?' I tapped Kenna on the shoulder, and she turned around in surprise. 'Mary! What are you two doing here?' 'Probably the same thing you are.' We ended up seeing the same movie, and it had turned into a double date pretty quickly. Before the movie had started I leaned over to Kenna and said, 'I can't believe that graduation is in a couple of days. I'm going to miss seeing you guys everyday.' Francis butted into the conversation, 'Hey, we'll all see each other everyday.' I was a bit of a pessimist, and Francis was an optimist, for sure. 'How are we all going to see each other outside of school? Other than our relationships, when are we going to see each other?' He turned to me and said 'Well, I guess we will just have to find a way.' He had a plan, I could tell, and I wasn't sure what it was.

A couple days later, it was graduation day, and Francis had come over to get ready with me. I put on waterproof mascara because I was guessing that there would be a lot of crying associated with this day. 'Are you ready to graduate?' he asked me, coming over to give me a hug. 'As ready as I'll ever be.' We got in his car and drove to the school, meeting up with Kenna and Bash. Kenna was already crying, and I went to give her a hug. 'Aw, Kenna it's ok. It's not like any of us are leaving or anything.' She sniffled 'I know, it's just weird. I've known all of you for most of this year, and not seeing you every morning and afternoon is going to feel so weird.' I started tearing up a little at this. 'We should go get our seats, guys.' Our school let us sit next to anyone we wanted, so I sat next to Francis, and Kenna sat next to Bash. The principal came up on stage and gave a speech before starting to call names. It felt like forever before he said, 'Mary Stuart.' I stood up and maneuvered around everyone's legs to go receive my diploma. I got onstage and shook his hand before I returned to my seat, tears threatening to fall. Francis' name was going to be called any minute, but he asked me 'Mary, why are you crying?' I looked up and bit my lip and replied, 'Other than the fact that we are graduating, my mom's not here. My mother who watched my go through all of this didn't even bother to make an appearance at my own graduation.' He gave me a short hug before his name was called to go to the stage.

It was all over fast enough, and Francis and I went back to my house. 'I don't want to live here anymore, with my flaky mother, and all of it.' He searched his pockets for something before turning to me and saying 'I'm almost glad that you said that. I want you to move in with me.' He told me taking keys out of his pocket 'I've already rented one; it has a really nice kitchen, open floor plan, 2 bedrooms. You would love i-.' 'Yes.' I whispered, and his smile grew. 'Yes?' 'Yes, yes, yes.' I told him before we started kissing each other. He saved me so many times before, and I didn't know why I thought this time would be different.


	11. Chapter 11

**MARY**

'I'm so happy.' I told him, our foreheads touching. 'So am I. I was afraid that you would say no, that we were moving too fast or something.' 'Francis, I would never miss an opportunity to spend time together.' It hit me like a truck, 'How were we going to tell our parents?' Catherine wouldn't like it, that's for sure. My mom would probably be too drunk to care, but the Valois' would not be happy. 'Mary, you do realize that we are both 18, right? We can do what we want.' 'I know, but I just want your parents to like me.' 'Well then, let's go.' He stood up and extended his hand. 'Let's get this over with.'

The first thought I had when we pulled into his driveway was _I have not missed this place at all. _ I loved Francis, but his family was not for me. We walked in holding hands, and Francis called out 'Bash! Mom Dad!' Catherine came downstairs first and gave Francis a hug. 'Oh Francis, we've missed you so much. Mary.' 'Mrs. Valois, always a pleasure.' I heard her mutter under her breath 'I would say the same, but it wouldn't be true.' It was going to be a long day. We all sat down at the table, and Francis said 'So guys, we have some news.' Catherine's smile dropped, 'Oh God, Francis. Is she pregnant?' Why does everyone think that when we say we have news? 'No, mom. She's not pregnant. We are moving in together.' Catherine's face read like an open book. 'Francis, I think that might be worse.' 'Mom.' Francis said in a warning tone. 'Be nice.' I'm very lucky that she loves her son, because otherwise she would be a lot worse. We all broke away and Francis went to talk to Bash and that left me to talk to Catherine, not that I would.

**FRANCIS**

I walked up to Bash's room, and told him that I needed to talk to him. I shut the door and whispered, 'Ok, this needs to be quiet, and you can't tell anyone, not even Kenna.' Bash stood up, worried. 'Francis, is she actually pregnant? Because congratulations.' 'No, why-. Ok, I'm going to propose to Mary.' 'Really?' he gave me a pat on the arm. 'What are you going to do? When are you going to do it?' I chuckled, 'Tonight, if she'll let me. I'm going to take her back to the restaurant that we had our first date at. I've requested a private, candlelight dinner, and violins, it's going to be so romantic, Bash. Then, at the end of it all, I'm just going to propose.' I'm sure at this point that I was grinning like an idiot, but I was so happy, and I knew that I wanted to be with Mary for the rest of my life.

We left my house and I could tell that it was hard for her. My mom doesn't like her, and I know that hurt her. 'Hey, it's over. We can just go home now, and be ourselves.' She nodded. We were going to start the moving process tomorrow, so for now, Mary's house was home. We hung out at her house in sweatpants and eating ice cream, laughing when we got ice cream on our noses. At around six, I asked the question that would determine everything. 'Do you want to go to dinner tonight?' She was a little surprised, because going out wasn't really our thing. 'Sure, we haven't gone out in a while, have we? Should I get dressed up?' 'Probably. But you would look beautiful in anything.' I gave her a quick kiss as she walked up the stairs to get ready. Tonight was the night that everything would change.

**MARY**

I was a little caught off guard when Francis asked if we should go out, but I was excited. We hadn't been out on a formal dinner in a while, and it's nice to go out. I picked a black formfitting dress with long sleeves, and curled my hair. I walked down the stairs, much like I did for prom, and saw him waiting in a tux at the bottom of the stairs. 'Well, don't you look handsome?' I kissed his cheek. He hadn't shaved in a while, and I loved the scruff that had developed on his face. 'Shall we go, beautiful?' I looked blushed, which happens far too often. 'We shall.'

We took a road that I didn't recognize and I had to ask 'Where are we going?' He stayed staring ahead, smiling, like he had for the past twenty minutes. 'You'll see.' It took me about five more minutes before I realized, and started smiling. 'We are going to the place we went for our first date, aren't we?' He looked at me. 'Damn. You're good.' I flipped my hair dramatically. 'So, what's the occasion?' 'Just going to dinner. There's no reason not to.' I didn't know what was up his sleeve, but I was fine with it, and I wasn't in the mood to sleuth.

We pulled into the parking spot and Francis came to open my door. 'Thank you.' I told him. The restaurant hadn't changed in the slightest. It still had lights strung across the roof, and the inside was just a quaint. 'Ah, Mr. Valois this way.' This set off a bell. He had been planning this for a while. We were brought to a private room with candles in the middle of the table. 'Oh, Francis. This is beautiful.' I ordered my food and drink, and we sat there holding hands. And the silence was enough.

**FRANCIS**

I was really nervous, more than I thought I would be. The main thing running through my head was _what if she says no_. She told me she would never miss an opportunity to spend time with me, but what if forever was too long? I'm sure she could feel my sweaty palms, and she was going to catch that something was up soon enough, but the plan would be in action by then. The violinists came in the room, and I knew that was my cue. I pulled my hands from hers, and stood up. 'Mary, when I was six, you were my best friend. I was so lost without you. Bash would come by my room everyday and ask me to play, and I would just look out the window, and wait for you to come back. When I realized we were in the same high school, I knew that it was my chance to have you back in my life. I tried to separate myself from you as much as possible, because I had for so long, but in the end I just couldn't. I'm so glad that I gave in. I love you so much, Mary Stuart.' I got down on my knee and pulled out the box that held my fate. 'Will you do me the honor of being my wife?'

**MARY**

I didn't know how to react. My emotions were on high alert, and they were on overload. I wanted to cry, to smile, to laugh, and I couldn't make sense of it all. 'Yes.' He breathed out, so relieved. 'Yes?' I nodded as he slid the ring on my finger, and my built-up tears fell. He stood up and I hugged him, and kissed him, and loved him. _My fiancé._ Things were moving fast, but I didn't mind. I loved Francis, and nothing needed to change.

We got back to my house, where piles and piles of boxes were in my room. Francis had packed up his things and I had mine and the truck was due to come tomorrow. The next morning, Francis woke up early, as usual, but so did I. As I got up I felt a wave of nausea crawl up my throat. I ran to the bathroom to throw up, and Francis came and moved back my hair. I brushed my teeth and freshened up as Francis came over and said 'Are you ok?' I nodded reluctantly because the feeling hadn't completely passed. 'I don't know what that was.' I said honestly. Nothing was going around, and it's not like I could be pregnant. The thought crossed my mind. _Maybe I could be_. I grabbed my phone and calculated when my period should be, which was five days ago. 'I'm just going to call the doctor.' I told him, he looked confused as I told the doctor all of my symptoms, and it clicked for him. 'Mary, you aren't.' 'I'm not sure yet, but the doctor will tell us.' The rest of the morning moved slowly as we packed the boxes into the truck and went to the doctors.

My leg was shaking as the nurse called me back, and I asked Francis if he wanted to come with me. 'If you want me there.' I did, and he walked back with me, holding my hand. 'So much has happened in the past few days. We got engaged, we are moving in together, and now there could be a baby.' He rubbed circles on the back of my hand. 'And I wouldn't change any of it for the world.' The doctor walked in to the room, and I told him my concerns. 'I've been throwing up, my emotions are going crazy, and I don't know what's going on.' She told me to lie on my back and she would check everything, and then she took my blood and told me that she would call us in a few days.

The rest of that day, I was on high alert. Any time a tone of any kind would go off, I would jump at it. We went back to the apartment and decided to start unboxing the boxes to kill some time. We ended up getting the TV ready and watching The Notebook before I heard the phone ring. I jumped up to answer it 'Hello, Mary, it's the doctor's office. We have your lab results.' I ushered Francis over and put the phone on speaker. 'You are not pregnant, Mary.' I didn't know how to react to this. Part of me wanted a baby, but the reality part of me knew we were too young, and this was a good thing. 'Ok, Thank you.' I said, with no particular emotion. 'Are you disappointed?' I asked Francis as soon as I hung up. 'When the time is right, Mary, we will have as many babies as you want. Besides, I don't think either of us are ready now anyways.' I twisted his words, 'But you would've been happy if it was positive.' He could tell I was getting upset, 'Mary, I would've been happy either way. One way, we get a baby, part you and part me. The other way, we can keep having fun and enjoy our new apartment, and no parents to interrupt anything.' He wiggled his eyebrows, and I laughed. Later that day, when I went to the bathroom, my period arrived to confirm what the doctor had told us, and after the argument Francis made earlier, I can't say that I was disappointed.

**FRANCIS**

I wanted a baby with Mary, of course, and what I said was true, but I was a little more disappointed than what I let on. To think of a precious little baby, a product over our love in this world made me so happy, but I do want a little more time to mess around and be us before that sort of responsibility. She came out and searched through the boxes before turning to me with a nervous look on her face. 'Francis, I might have forgotten something at the house.' 'What's that?' 'Um, well, I need some tampons.' _Oh, God_. 'Could you run to the store and get some for me? Please?' I really, really didn't want to do this. 'Sure. Can you write down the brand or something.' She looked so relieved. 'Absolutely.' She handed me a piece of paper with some words scribbled on it. 'I'll be right back.'

I got in my car and headed to the drug store, but I could already tell that it was not going to be fun. I stood in the woman's section for about twenty minutes before a woman came over. 'Sir, can I help you?' I jumped. 'Oh, yeah. Do you have this?' I showed her the piece of paper and she looked at me sympathetically. She picked them off of the shelf almost immediately and handed it to me. 'Thanks.' I was checking out and I saw a whole stack of chocolate bars next to the cashier. 'Could I have one of those, and some roses too?'

I unlocked the door to find Mary sprawled out on the couch in her sweatpants. 'Thank you so much.' She said as she turned around, and I presented her with the flowers and chocolate. 'Awww, Francis, you didn't have to do that.' She gave me a kiss. 'Anything for my fiancé.' I told her. 'I don't think I'll ever get tired of hearing that word.'


	12. Chapter 12

**MARY**

A week later, Francis and I had planned to go to the beach for a couple of days with Kenna and Bash. 'Oh my gosh, I'm so excited.' Kenna squealed as she got into the car. Francis and Bash hadn't seen each other since the day of the proposal so a little brotherly time was in order, but this trip was mostly a couples retreat. Bash and Francis sat in the front, and Kenna and I sat in the back, ready to go. 'Everybody buckled in?' Francis turned on the car. 'Yep.' I told him. 'Kiss for good luck?' I smiled and gave him a quick kiss. Kenna pouted and put her head on Bash's shoulder. 'Do I get a kiss?' The kiss started as a peck and quickly grew into a deeper kiss, which neither Francis nor I appreciated. 'Ok, ew, break it up please.' Bash laughed as he pulled apart from Kenna and smiled. 'Hey, don't be hypocrites, we've both seen how you two kiss.' I laughed, 'I don't regret anything.' 'And neither do I.' This trip was going to be fun.

Halfway through the trip, both Bash and Kenna had fallen asleep, leaving just Francis and I awake in the car. 'Do you need me to drive for a while or anything?' I whispered, not waking them. I started trailing kisses from his jaw down his neck. 'No, but if you want to make it to the beach, then I do need you to stop that.' He replied to the kisses. I laughed and sat back in my seat. He immediately followed up by saying, 'By all means, later, please continue.' I smirked into the mirror and said, 'Maybe I will.'

We made it to the beach about an hour later, and I leaned over to Kenna. 'Kenna, wake up.' I nudged her gently, because I knew she got mad if you woke her up in a dramatic way. Once, when we were five, I woke up early so I jumped on the bed to wake her up, and she was not in a good mood. She jolted awake and kicked Bash's seat by accident. 'What?' Bash screamed. Francis was off to the side, laughing harder than I'd ever seen him. After the whole thing was over, we walked up to the hotel and checked in. Kenna and Bash had their own room and Francis and I had ours. Our rooms weren't adjoining for privacy reasons, but they were next to each other so they might as well be. Francis threw my suitcase on the bed and I unzipped it so I could unpack. We were going to be at the beach for a week, so I brought tons of dresses, and bikinis, and sweatpants for pajamas. 'Do you want to go to the beach?' I asked him, and he said yes. I left our room, and went to knock on Kenna's door but noticed the do not disturb sign. I strolled back to our room and unlocked the door. 'They can't stop going at it for an hour at the beach.' I told him. 'Well, it's just you and me then I guess.' I picked my black and white polka dot top and black bottoms for my swimsuit, and I'm pretty sure Francis liked it.

**FRANCIS**

She walked out in a tiny bathing suit that definitely caught my eye. 'You're so beautiful.' I told her, and she blew me a kiss. She walked over to the suitcase and pulled out some sunscreen, which fell on the ground, and she seductively bent down to get it. 'Oops.' She said as she came back up. This woman was going to be the death of me. 'Let's go out in public before something happens.' She smiled as she strutted out of the hotel room.

We got out to the beach and Mary laid a towel down on the golden sand. 'Right here looks good.' I told her. Before I even got a chance to lay down my towel, she grabbed my hand and pulled me toward the water. 'Come on!' she yelled. Her feet hit the water first, and she yelped. 'It's so cold!' The water had hit my feet before I could protest. I felt chills crawl up my body as she got a handful of water and poured it over my head. 'Oh, my God!' It really was cold.

'I left Kenna and Bash a note for when they're done to join us by the way.' She told me as I wrapped a towel around my shoulders. 'Knowing my brother, they probably won't be done for a while.' 'Well, can't say I didn't try.' It was getting darker, and we were both getting hungry. We went inside and ordered some room service, having a night in and renting a movie. 'What movie should we watch?' I asked after the food had been brought in. 'What's on the TV?' None of the movies were good. 'There's nothing.' I told her. 'We could talk.' So we did. Nothing more happened, we just talked. It was nice to hear her input on some things, without drama. At around one in the morning, we thought it might be good to get some sleep, unlike my brother next door, and we both got under the covers with the intention of going to bed, but I laced my arms around her waist and we just talked more.

We fell asleep eventually, I don't know when, and I woke up first. I loved waking up before Mary. She was so peaceful when she was sleeping, and she had no worries. I hated to see Mary in pain, especially when her mom hurt her. I tucked a fallen piece of hair behind her ear, and she woke up. 'Good Morning.' I kissed her forehead. 'Good Morning. Should we take Bash and Kenna out for breakfast?' she said. That's my Mary, always thinking of others. 'If they aren't engaging in other activities.' She laughed. 'It's nine in the morning, I will be seriously surprised if they are that active.' She got up and slipped a robe over nightgown. I heard her knock on the door and yell 'Rise and shine, lovebirds.' Before proposing breakfast. She walked back in, looking triumphant. 'They agreed.' Then it was my turn to get up and get dressed. Mary told me that she was going to take a bath, and I swear, this time I actually needed something this time. 'Mary, I need to get in to brush my teeth.' I told her through the door. 'Come in, it's nothing that you haven't seen before.' I walked in and tried not to stare, but she was so beautiful. There were bubbles everywhere, which made it easier for me, but I definitely took my time.

I called Bash and said 'Hey, you guys ready?' after Mary came out of the bathroom and got on a nice dress. He told me that they would meet us at the car, and to head on down. They were at the car, as promised, and we all hopped in, this time with Mary and me up front and Kenna and Bash in the back. 'Where do you guys want to go?' Kenna chimed up first. 'Oh, I saw this really good breakfast place on the directory, it think it's about a mile away.' Everyone else agreed, and we all headed down. The restaurant was a small building overlooking the ocean, and they had all of the regular breakfast foods. I got eggs and bacon, and Mary got pancakes. The rest of breakfast was uneventful, but we all decided to go to down to the pier. It was right across from the restaurant so we walked over. It was high tide and there were so many things to see. 'Francis look!' Mary hit my arm, and I saw what she was looking at immediately. There was a family of dolphins swimming by the pier.

We all didn't have much to do that day, and the tide hadn't receded, so Mary and I decided to make some wedding plans. 'This is so exciting.' I was getting married to the woman of my dreams, and it was all coming together. 'Do you want a summer wedding?' I asked her. 'That sounds wonderful, if you do.' 'I just want to marry you.' Which was true. We decided on June 25, which was three months away. 'We have a lot to do in three months, don't we?' There was the dress, the tux, the cake, the venue, everything. 'Let's get started then.'

**MARY**

I found out that there was a wedding dress shop down the street, so I asked Kenna to go with me. 'Welcome to vows. Do you need any help?' The saleswoman was too perky and I didn't like it. 'We are fine, thank you.' This brought back memories of prom dress shopping. I saw a dress that caught my eye immediately. It was strapless and was fitted down to the waist where it flared out into a ball gown with a train that was out of this world. 'Kenna, I have to try this on.' I had her help me put it on and she fluffed out the skirt. 'Mary, oh my gosh.' There were tears in my eyes. 'I'm getting married.' I told her. She sniffled and whispered, 'I'll get us some tissues.' I know that you should try on more than one dress, but I could tell this was the one, just like I knew Francis was the one. She came back in with a box of tissues and I told her. 'This is it. I just know it is.' 'Then let's go to checkout.' It ended up being about a grand, which was relatively cheap for a wedding dress of its grandness. 'Can you keep this in your room so Francis doesn't see it?' She agreed like the best friend she was, 'Oh, and Kenna, will you be my maid of honor?' Now she was the one crying. 'I would be honored.'


	13. Chapter 13

**MARY**

We realized that before we sent out the invitations that we should tell Catherine. We called Bash to let him know that we were coming over and to expect us in about five minutes, and we let him know that we were telling Catherine. 'Hello?' Francis yelled as it echoed through the house. 'Francis, the only time you come over now is when you have news, so what is it?' Francis was finally seeing the true side of his mother and he looked taken aback by it. 'Well, we are engaged. We are getting married on June 25.' She looked between the both of us and then down to my hand. 'Mary, can I talk to you for a second?' I released Francis' hand and followed her towards the kitchen. 'Look, I don't like you, or your mother, but I do love Francis so I guess we should start to get along.' I guess that was the best apology I was going to get. 'I guess we should.' She nodded once in her business like way. 'Is your mother walking you down the aisle?' I opted my mother out of the wedding because the last thing I wanted was a drunken mother yelling about how she slept with my husband's father. 'No.' 'Then I will.' I didn't have time to protest as she left the room almost immediately. She marched into the hallway where Francis was waiting and clapped her hands together. 'Ok, so I'm walking Mary down the aisle, and let's go pick out your wedding dress.' 'I already have my dress.' I told her. 'You can't buy a dress without someone else there to tell you when you look horrible- I mean beautiful.' I rolled my eyes. 'Kenna was there to help me. It's fine. We'll handle everything and you can just show up. Okay?' But this was Catherine we were talking about. 'No no, I'll help you get your tuxedo today, Francis, and then we will go find a venue together.' Francis looked over at me and mouthed _I'm sorry._

Once Catherine and Francis had picked the tuxedo, we all went to look at venues, which had all been preselected by Catherine. 'Ok, so we have a grand church, an outdoor venue which I highly am against because of all natural forces that could occur, and a castle-like building with a ballroom and everything.' She had a point on the outdoor wedding so we decided to look at the church. It was grand- she had that right, but it just didn't have the space for a reception. 'I don't think this is it.' I told her. Bless Francis for being there, he was every part of this wedding as I was, but at that moment it was the Mary and Catherine show. 'Do you agree? I don't want to leave you out.' I told him. 'Yes, I agree, and I'm perfectly content with standing on the sidelines.' I kissed him before Catherine grabbed my hand and pulled me to the car. 'Ok, next venue- the castle.' I couldn't lie. I was excited about this one. It had a beautiful outside, and there was a space inside for a large ceremony, which there would be, and an elegant reception. 'What do you think?' I asked Francis 'I think it's perfect, just like you.' He kissed my forehead and Catherine was done. 'Both of you, cut it out. I'm here for help, not for make out time.' She trotted away, with us both at her heels. She left to talk to someone for a couple of minutes and came back to tell us that we got it.

We drove home without Catherine, and it was quiet, but that was a good thing. 'One can only handle so much Catherine in one day.' I told him, and he nodded. We got home and sat down on the couch, and just sat in silence before he suggested, 'You know, we haven't used that bed for anything other than sleeping yet.' I smiled at what he implied, and completely gave myself to him.

It was about six after we were done, and we were both hungry, so I told him that I would make some spaghetti. I got all of the pots and pans ready and was starting to boil the water when the doorbell rang out of the blue. I wiped my hands off on my apron and opened the door to find a smiling Kenna holding a key. 'Guess who just moved into this apartment complex?' I faked being confused for a second. 'You?' She nodded. 'Not just me though. Me and Bash.' The first thing that ran through my mind was happiness, and then second thing was _please don't be the apartment next to us_, because they are the definition of rabbits. 'Why don't you guys join us for dinner?' I asked her. 'I'll talk to Bash about it and come back in a minute.' She left and I shut the door, calling for Francis. 'Did you know that your brother and my best friend have moved in together' He looked as surprised as I felt. 'I did not.' 'Well, apparently they did, and they are coming over for dinner tonight.' He came up and grabbed my waist to pull me towards him. 'I was hoping that we could eat dinner, and then maybe afterwards, we could have dessert.' He said smirking and reaching up to cup my face and kiss me. 'Well, I guess dessert will have to wait until later tonight.'

I had just put the noodles in the pot as Kenna and Bash knocked on the door. 'Francis, can you get that please?' He groaned and got up from his spot on the couch to let them in. 'It smells wonderful in here.' Kenna said walking in. 'Kenna, nothing is actually cooking yet, but thank you for the effort.' 'Hey, I tried.' I offered them something to drink, and they both said no and sat down on the couch with Francis. 'So, what's up guys? Other than moving in with each other.' 'Well, nothing much.' They all small talked for a while before dinner was ready. 'Francis and I have this thing for Italian and Chinese food, so I thought that I would try this.' I wanted to try the food first, but they beat me to it. 'Is it good?' I asked, hopeful. They nodded, but to me the real test was whether I thought It was good or not. I took a bite, and I had to say, it wasn't all too bad. We all watched some TV together, and they left after a couple of hours.


End file.
